Leon Jenkins, the president of the Los Angeles chapter of the NAACP, has resigned. His decision came after much scrutiny over the organization’s connection to Clippers owner Donald Sterling.

According to the Associated Press, the national leader of the civil rights organization announced Jenkins’ departure on Thursday. In his resignation letter, Jenkins said “the legacy, history and reputation of the NAACP is more important to me than the presidency.”

“In order to separate the Los Angeles NAACP and the NAACP from the negative exposure I have caused the NAACP, I respectfully resign my position,” he wrote.

Before he stepped down, Jenkins planned to honor Sterling with a lifetime achievement award later this month. Of course, this decision was made before audio of the 80-year-old’s racist rant hit the web. The organization rescinded the award, and during a press conference on Monday, Jenkins announced that Sterling’s donation would be returned as well. “There is a personal, economic and social price that Mr. Sterling must pay for his attempt to turn back the clock on race relations,” he told reporters.

As a result of this unfortunate situation, NAACP said it plans to develop “guidelines for its branches to help them in their award selection process.”